Photo by Gary Wayne Gilbert
A January 30 symposium focused on the social context of development will mark the official launch of a new name for Boston College's Lynch School of Education: the Lynch School of Education and Human Development, which acknowledges the school's strength in applied psychology and whole-person approaches to human development.
Stanton Wortham
"The name enhancement reflects our faculty strengths and substantial research and teaching expertise in counseling and developmental psychology, an academic area not formally recognized in our school's name until now," said Stanton Wortham, the Charles F. Donovan, S.J., Dean of the Lynch School of Education and Human Development.
"The new designation merges the outstanding work we do in teacher education, educational leadership, higher education, and curriculum and instruction with our distinguished capabilities in human development, thereby better reflecting the school's focus and resources."
BC's first coeducational school on the Chestnut Hill Campus, the School of Education opened in 1952 to 176 freshmen. Its academic reputation was rewarded in 1999 when philanthropists Carolyn and Peter Lynch contributed more than $10 million to the school, resulting in its formal renaming in their honor in November 2000. Today, more than 1,425 undergraduate and graduate students attend the Lynch School, ranked 21st among graduate schools of education by U.S. News & World Report, and first among Catholic schools of education.
At the symposium, titled "Partnering with Schools and Communities to Foster Human Development," Lynch School faculty members Belle Liang, a professor of counseling psychology, Eric Dearing, a professor of applied developmental & educational psychology, and Rebecca Lowenhaupt, an associate professor in the Educational Leadership & Higher Education Department, will discuss the school's research on social contexts of development, how that research informs practice, and how the resulting lessons contribute to strengthening community and fostering justice. The symposium will begin at 4 p.m. in the Yawkey Center's Murray Family Function Room, with welcoming remarks by University Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley.
"We look forward to introducing our new name and hosting the symposium during an afternoon of celebration," said Wortham. "It will be a great day for the Lynch School of Education and Human Development."
Phil Gloudemans | University Communications | January 17, 2019